Secrets Revealed
by WeasleyObsession
Summary: Nancy Granger has some shocking news for Arthur Weasley. Could Hermione be his daughter? How will he react? How will Molly, Hermione, and the rest of the Weasleys take the news? Takes place Christmas 1998 AU
1. Telling Arthur

"Thank you for meeting with me, Arthur," Mrs. Granger said as they sat in a tea shop in Muggle London.

"It's not a problem, Nancy. But I must say, I'm a bit puzzled as to why you invited me. We're both married and have kids now, so you know there can be nothing more between us. Besides, that was nineteen years ago," Arthur replied, looking into her hazel eyes..

"No, it's nothing of that sort. You - you need to know something."

"Is everything alright?" he asked, concerned.

"Everything is fine, I suppose." Nancy stared into her teacup while unconsciously playing with a strand of hair. "It's about Hermione."

Arthur reached across the table and gently lifted her chin with his finger. She was forced to look into his warm, caring blue eyes. He softly asked, "What about her?"

He had suspected it was something about Ron and Hermione, but if that was the case, why wasn't Molly or Richard with them...There was only one other thing Arthur thought this meeting could possibly be about - but it couldn't be. Yes, it was possible, but not probable.

"It's time I told you this. I wouldn't even tell you if she hadn't gotten involved with one of your sons."

 _No. No, this can not be happening. She isn't about to say what I think she is. Well, if she does, I guess it's a good thing Molly isn't here. Wait. Molly. What would I tell Molly._ Thoughts raced through Arthur's head, of what Nancy was about to say, of how Molly would react.

Nancy took a deep breath. "Hermione is - She's your daughter," she finished quickly. All color drained from Arthur's face, and he sat gaping at the brunette sitting across from him. This is exactly what he hoped Nancy wouldn't say.

"B-b-but how?" he asked once he was capable of forming words. "I-I thought we took precautions."

She placed her hand over his on the table, and whispered so only he could hear, "We did, but we had to use Muggle protection since I didn't know about the magical world and you couldn't use magicaround a Muggle _._ Condoms don't always work."

"Ahh, okay."

"I'm sorry about this -"

"- Don't be. I've always loved and thought of Hermione as a daughter...which I suppose is only appropriate since she is."

"I wouldn't have even told you this if she and Ron weren't getting so serious."

"Why didn't you tell me before now?"

"Well, you had your own family, and I let her stay with you during the holidays, so I thought that would be enough."

"Thank you, but I would've liked to have known. Does Richard know?"

"Sort of." Arthur gave her a questioning look, then she elaborated, "He knows she isn't his daughter, but he doesn't know whose she is."

He nodded. "Okay." Arthur thought for a moment, and continued slowly, "So, let me get this straight. Hermione is my daughter, product of the little fling you and I had nineteen years ago that, at the time, neither Molly nor Richard knew about. You've let her stay with us, so I could spend time with the daughter I never knew I had. And you're only telling me because of her relationship with my son."

Nancy nodded her head in affirmation. "Mmhmm."

Arthur leaned back in his seat and ran his hand through his hair in consternation. He let out a deep breath. "What are we going to do?"

"We have to tell them -"

"- We are not telling anyone this," Arthur interrupted. "There's no telling what Molly would do if she found out that I was unfaithful, even just for one night, let alone if I had an illegitimate child."

"What do you suggest we do then"? Nancy challenged.

"We split them up," was Arthur's quick response.

"And how exactly do we do that?"

This time Arthur wasn't quick to respond. He racked his brain for an idea, but failed. Besides, he couldn't do that to his son, or daughter. And what if they ended up getting back together? The truth would have to come out.

"Fine, you're right. You and Richard come to the Burrow for dinner tomorrow. The kids will already be there since school hasn't started back from the Christmas holidays."

He stood to leave when Nancy asked him, "What's your take on this situation? Are you mad, that I didn't tell you about this?"

"It's bittersweet," he replied as he pulled on his coat. "I just wish you would've told me sooner. I've spent all this time with my daughter without even knowing it." He thought for a moment, "What if I died in the war, and never knew she was my daughter? What if she died, would you have told me then...when it would've been too late?" He left Nancy to ponder these last words.

Neither of them got a wink of sleep that night, scenarios playing through their heads of how the conversation at dinner would go, how everyone would react, and, in Arthur's case, what this would mean for his marriage, and how this would affect his relationship with Hermione.

 **A/N: Thanks for reading chapter 1. Hope you enjoyed it! The next chapter is on its way. How will Ron, Molly, and Hermione react to this news? Or will Arthur back out at the last minute?**

 **Also, I do not own Harry Potter.**

 **Please review!**


	2. In the Night

**A/N: Hey, everyone! Thanks for all the views, follows, favs, and reviews.**

 **I know I said this would only be two chapters, but I feel like this should be its own chapter. So there will probably be two more after this, and, if y'all want an epilogue, I'll write an epilogue. The next chapter is definitely going to be about them telling the family.**

 **Nanettez, I thought about your idea, but I didn't feel Arthur could lie to his family about something this big. But, it might be mentioned in the next chapter. I'm not sure yet.**

 **Here's chapter 2 of Secrets Revealed. Let me know what you think. Thanks for reading.**

"Molly," Arthur whispered into the darkness. "Molly," he said a little louder while gently shaking his wife. "Wake up."

"What is it, Arthur?" Molly mumbled, rolling over.

"I need to talk to you about something."

"Can't it wait until tomorrow? Its three thirty in the morning."

"No, I need to talk to you now."

Molly sat up and lit her wand. "What's so important that it can't wait a few more hours?" she asked agitatedly.

Arthur looked into Molly's brown eyes. "Molly, you know I love you, right? And I have _never_ stopped loving you, even for a second."

"Yes, I know that. Where are you going with this, Arthur?" Molly was beginning to worry,

"Wait. First…do you love me?"

"Of course, I do."

"Please, actually say it. I need to hear you say it."

"I love you, Arthur," Molly said sincerely. "Is everything okay?" She was frightened now. Arthur had never acted this way before.

"No." Arthur looked down at the bed and when he looked back up to Molly, she could see something was really bothering him. "Molly, I have been unfaithful to you. I'm so sorry."

"Excuse me?" Molly didn't want to believe what her husband had just confessed.

"It - I - Molly -" Arthur hesitated. "I have another daughter."

"Arthur, this better be some sort of cruel joke," Molly said with an edge to her voice.

Arthur shook his head slowly. "I'm sorry. It's not."

Molly pointed her wand at Arthur and spoke through clenched teeth, "Arthur Septimus Weasley, you have to the count of three to leave my sight, or I swear..."

"Molly, please, just let me explain -"

"- One."

"Dear, please don't do anything rash."

" _Two_." Molly abruptly got out of bed, wand still directed at Arthur who immediately scrambled out of his side. "I suggest you get out. _Now."_

"I'm begging you. Please let me explain." Arthur made one last attempt.

" _Three!"_ Arthur took cover just as a hex shot from the tip of an irate Molly's wand.

"Okay! Okay! I'm going!" He made it out the door just as another hex exploded behind him.

He only slowed down when he heard the bedroom door slam shut, but he didn't stop. He figured it best not to stay in the house in case Molly woke up and still hadn't calmed down any. Arthur went out into the cold January night air and locked himself in his shed.

ooOoo

Ginny and Hermione woke to the sound of the sound of an explosion and shouting.

"What was that?" Hermione asked, alarmed.

"I think it was my parents," Ginny replied, rushing to her bedroom door. She stepped out onto the landing with Hermione right behind her.

"Ginny, was that Mum and Dad?" Ron called from the top of the staircase.

The two girls looked up at Ron who was now running down the stairs two at a time. "Yes, I think so," Ginny answered. "Where's Harry?" she asked when Ron reached them and Harry was not with him.

"He's asleep. Surprised he didn't wake up," Ron said, a little out of breath.

"Okay! Okay! I'm going!" Arthur's voice rang through the silent house, followed closely by a loud bang and a flash of light.

The kids were worried. They had no idea what was going on, and, what with the war just ending and Death Eaters still on the loose, it could be an attack, so they drew their wands and cautiously descended the last flight of stairs that separated them from their parents' bedroom. Ron almost hit his father with a hex when Arthur darted onto the landing and down the stairs. The girls were more careful, so they didn't fire any spells when they realized it was Arthur running out of the room.

"You better stay out, Arthur Weasley!" Molly screeched and slammed the door.

Ron and Ginny their father go into the kitchen, then looked out of a nearby window to see where he was going. They watched Arthur enter his shed. Ginny turned her gaze to her parents' closed bedroom door while Ron stared at the shed.

"Fight?" Ginny asked.

Ron scoffed. "At four in the morning?"

"What do you suppose happened?" his sister retorted.

"I don't know. Maybe he – or she could have –" he fished for a reason, then finally gave up. "Fine. I guess you're right."

"Has this happened before?" Hermione asked timidly.

"No," the siblings answered in unison.

"And Mum's never been this angry...well, except when she took down Bellatrix." Ginny turned to her brother. "Ron, this isn't good."

"I'll take Dad, you take Mum," Ron said.

"Why do I always get Mum when she's upset?" Ginny argued.

"Because you're her only daughter."

"I'm Dad's only daughter, too."

"Well, I don't want to go near her when she's that mad. Besides, you're a girl and she's a girl, and I'm a guy and Dad's a guy, so…"

"Fine."

Hermione went back to Ginny's room as Ron took off to the shed and Ginny went to her parents' bedroom.

"Mum?" Ginny knocked on the door. "Mum! Is everything okay? What happened?" The door didn't open and Ginny didn't hear anything when she pressed her ear to the door. Molly had, apparently, put a silencing charm on the room. " _Alohamora!_ " Ginny tried unlocking the door, but it didn't work. After five minutes, she gave up and headed to the shed.

Ron approached the shed. "Dad!" he called as he knocked.

There was no answer. _Really? Ron heard?_ Arthur thought, _If he heard, so did everyone else. Damn it! Well, maybe if I don't answer…_

"Dad!" he called a bit louder. "I know you're in here. What happened?"

 _Great, I'm going to have to talk to him. This wasn't supposed to happen until tomorrow...if I'm lucky, they didn't hear what the fight was about. Yeah, that part wasn't loud._ Arthur walked over to open the door since he left his wand on the bedside table. _Merlin, I hope Molly doesn't break it._ He unlocked the door and turned around to walk back to his workbench.

Ron took a step in and closed the door behind him. When he turned back around, Arthurhad his back turned to him.. He wouldn't move any closer until he could determine his Dad's attitude. Ron wasn't sure if Arthur was angry like his Mum was, and he wasn't sure how Arthur would react to his interruption because he clearly wanted to be left alone.

"Dad, do you want to tell me what that was all about?" he asked tentatively.

Arthur turned to face his son, but before he could say anything there was another knock on the door. Both father's and son's hopes were raised a little, thinking it was Molly. Though, Ron thought it was a bit soon for Ginny to have calmed her Mum down and Arthur also thought it unlikely. He motioned for his son to open the door anyway.

Ron gave Ginny a questioning look as she walked in, silently asking about their Mum. She shook her head. "She wouldn't even answer the door. I think she put a silencing charm up, so she may not have even heard me," she told her brother.

Arthur rubbed his face as he sat down on a stool. He hated how much he hurt his Molly. She had never done anything to him in the thirty plus years of knowing each other. She had almost always been the perfect wife and mother and had done everything she could for him.

"Dad," his daughter's voice pulled him out of his thoughts. He hadn't noticed they had moved to sit or stand next to him. They had sensed that he wasn't angry, but upset instead. Their parents never fought or argued often, but whenever they did neither Arthur nor Molly was ever this upset about it. "What was that all about?"

Arthur looked at his two youngest children. "You both know that I love your mother? And this family?"

"Of course, we do," Ron and Ginny answered together.

"But what does that have to do with this?" Ron asked.

 _Oh, good. They didn't hear what the fight was about. I could just play it off until tomorrow night,_ Arthur thought. "Nothing. I just wanted to make sure you knew that."

"Are you and Mum – getting a – a divorce?" Ginny asked, hoping her assumption was wrong. She knew her father wasn't telling them the whole truth. There had to be a reason that he felt he needed to make sure they knew he loved their mother and his kids.

Arthur replied hastily, even though he wasn't sure how things would play out now, "No, no. Of course not." He hoped he answered her convincingly.

His kids studied him for a moment, trying to determine if he was telling the truth now and to deciding how to react. Fortunately for Arthur, Ron and Ginny were satisfied with his answer. They still had questions, though.

"What happened, then? Mum looked homicidal." The kids inquired a third time. Arthur could tell that he wouldn't be getting out of this easily. He would either have to tell the truth, lie, or be stern with them. He didn't like any of the options, so he would try to delay having to make a decision.

"It's complicated," he calmly stated.

"It's four in the morning. It can't be that complicated," Ron blurted out.

"Seriously, a fight that lasts a few minutes this early in the morning can't be that hard to understand." Ginny paused for a moment, "Unless, you and Mum were arguing all night," she concluded slowly.

"No, it was only a few minutes. Look, you both need to get back to bed." Arthur attempted to get his kids to stop asking questions and leave him alone.

"But we want to know what caused Mum to get that mad and you to get this upset –" Ron began to protest.

"- What's upsetting me now is that neither of you will drop it! Look, I did something stupid and confessed to your mother." He would have to be stern with them, but he supposed it was better than telling the truth or lying, though.

"What did you do that was so bad?" Ginny was determined to find out the reason behind the argument. Ron obeyed his father and stopped badgering him.

"You'll find out soon enough," Arthur said. "Now, go on." He motioned for them to leave.

"Alright, fine," Ginny conceded. She started for the door with Ron close behind. Before she opened the door, she noticed her father hadn't moved, so she turned around. "Dad, aren't you coming? There are other rooms, and the couch.""

"I think it's safer if I stay out here for tonight…I may need to stay out here until people start showing up for dinner tomorrow, depending on how your Mum is."

"It's freezing out here, though. Put up some heating charms, at least."

"I would, but my wand is inside."

"Here." Ron put up some heating charms while Ginny conjured a pallet for her Dad to sleep on, though he may not do much sleeping tonight. "We'll check on you tomorrow, bring you your wand and some food."

Arthur gave them a wan smile. "Thanks. Well, goodnight."

"Goodnight, Daddy. Love you," Ginny said.

""Night, Dad. Love you."

"I love you both."

Ron and Ginny went back to the house and made their way up the stairs. They tried their Mum's bedroom door on the way up, but it was still locked. Harry was still asleep when Ron returned to his room, and Hermione had fallen asleep by time Ginny got back.


	3. The Dinner

The Burrow was packed. Arthur had forgotten it was Sunday today when he invited the Gramgers to dinner, so everyone - Arthur, Molly, Bill, Fleur, Charlie, Percy, Audrey, George, Ron, Ginny, Harry, and Hermione - was there for the weekly Sunday dinner. Throw Nancy and Richard in the mix and the house was almost bursting at the seams.

Even though everyone tried acting as though nothing had happened, the tension in the atmosphere was so thick it could be cut with a knife. Ron and Ginny had told their siblings of the events that took place the previous night, so all the Weasleys knew of their parents' fight upon their arrival at the Burrow. Molly did not let on that anything had happened, not knowing her kids already knew, and, despite his various attempts, would not even look at or acknowledge Arthur. Arthur would not divulge the reason for the fight no matter what tactics his kids used to weasel it out of him. Other than Molly's coldness toward Arthur, the Weasleys, Harry, and Hermione did such a fine job at hiding this tension that Fleur, Audrey, and the Grangers did not suspect anything was out of the ordinary.

Before dinner, Nancy pulled Arthur outside while everyone else was busy helping with dinner or talking. Arthur cast Muffliato to prevent being overheard anyway.

"I swear, if you say you've changed your mind..." Arthur said before Nancy could open her mouth.

"W-what? No, no, I haven't." Arthur's sudden attitude change shocked Nancy. "I was just wondering how you wanted to do this since you didn't stick around long enough to discuss it yesterday."

"Well, excuse me if I didn't know how to feel about this," Arthur said sarcastically. "I could gain a daughter and lose my family all within twenty four hours."

"Ok. Look, I'm sorry, but I'm not the one who decided to do this today," Nancy retorted. "We can do this later this week if you need to sort out your feelings on this or if you want to think of a different way to break them up permanently," she offered.

"No, Nancy, we can't. I already told Molly that I slept with someone else and have another daughter, though she doesn't know with whom or when, but either way my marriage may be over."

"Oh, now you're just overreacting -"

"- _Overreacting_? I am not overreacting," Arthur interrupted. "Infuriated is an understatement to describe Molly's attitude when I told her. Today she hasn't done anything to me because the kids are around. She's just been ignoring me all day."

"You didn't have to tell her right away."

"I didn't. I told her at four a.m. because I couldn't sleep and it was gnawing away at me. I could barely deal with not telling her that I cheated on her, but this whole daughter thing..." he trailed off.

" _'Daughter thing'_? If you don't want anything to do with her then you don't -" Nancy began before Arthur cut her off.

"- I did _not_ say that. She is my daughter and I want to form a father-daughter relationship with her. How could you think I wouldn't?"

"Oh, I don't know. Maybe with the way you're acting..."

"I'm not upset with her. I'm upset with you for not telling me about her. I've missed so many important events in her life because you kept this from me. And before you say anything, letting her stay here as my son's friend is completely different than letting her stay here as my daughter."

"Arthur, -" Nancy was about to explain why she didn't tell him about Hermione, but was interrupted by Molly calling everyone in for dinner.

"Alright, everyone! Dinner is ready! Come on!" Molly's voice rang throughout the house and yard, calling everyone to the table.

"We'll do it after we eat then," Nancy hissed as they entered the kitchen with the rest of the family.

The Weasley kids did their best to make dinner a boisterous affair as it usually was. Arthur and Nancy were reserved and trying to cool down from their argument. Molly still was ignoring Arthur even though he was sitting right beside her.

Everyone had finished desert and were chatting. Both Nancy's and Arthur's tempers had cooled down and they glanced at each other, knowing the time had come to reveal their secret.

Arthur cleared his throat to gather the attention of the table. All eyes, except Molly, turned to the Weasley patriarch…He froze. He couldn't make an _announcement_ like this in front of his entire family plus some.

Nancy, seeing this, knew she would have to take the initiative. "Hermione." Everyone turned to Nancy now. "You're not Muggle-born."

Hermione was shocked. When she was able to, she asked, "How? Are one of you a squib?" She looked between her parents.

Although she wasn't sure what a squib was, Nancy knew neither of them were. "No...Hermione, Richard isn't your biological father. Your father is a wizard…a pureblood wizard."

Things were beginning to click for Molly and her temper was slowly rising again. _Is this what Arthur was talking about last night? But, why would he wait so long to tell me though?_

Hermione was speechless. Finally she stammered out, "W-who - who is?"

Nancy didn't answer. Arthur would have to take the reins now.

"Who's my dad?" she asked a little louder.

"I am."

Everyone's head snapped back to the head of the table, including Molly's. Different variations of shoc, disappoint, and anger were etched in each face.

"I'm sorry?" Hermione asked incredulously.

He looked Hermione in the eyes. "Hermione. I. Am. Your. Father." He paused briefly between each word, trying to make her believe it as much as he was trying to make himself believe it.

"No," was Hermione's response. She was almost laughing. "This is some sort of joke, right?"

Arthur and Nancy shared a meaningful glance then Nancy turned back to her daughter. "No, Sweetie, we're not joking. Arthur is your biological father."

"So, is this why Mum kicked you out last night?" Ginny asked her dad.

"Yeah, Dad, you can't be serious," Charlie stated.

"You would never do something like that to Mum," Bill said matter-of-factly

Arthur nodded, avoiding making eye contact with any of his kids or his wife. He couldn't look at any of them right now.

" _Arthur. Weasley_ ," Molly snarled. The chair scraped across the wooden floor as she stood abruptly, reaching for her wand which had apparently vanished. Arthur was out of his chair just as quickly as Molly, putting his hands in front of him in an attempt to calm his wife.

"Molly, dear, please calm down."

"Arthur, where is my wand?"

"I took it to prevent a repeat of last night."

Arthur stood his ground as Molly advanced and slapped him hard across the face. His hand flew to his stinging cheek. All the kids could do was look on helplessly as these and the next events unraveled in front of their eyes.

"It is one thing to screw some hussy and get her pregnant, but to keep it from me for nineteen years and have your illegitimate daughter live in this house and date your son is just despicable!"

"Molly, it's not like that!" Arthur protested.

"It sure as hell looks like it! Have you slept with anyone else? Or have any more illegitimate children? Is Harry your son? Is that why he's living here too?" She shot question after question at him, not giving him enough time to answer any.

"It was one night!" Arthur yelled, putting a stop to Molly's rampage. "It was one night and I didn't know! If you would be rational and let me explain, you would have all your questions answered."

Molly glared at him then said in a deadly calm voice, "Give me my wand _now_." She looked as if she were about to explode with anger.

Finally, someone made a move to stop this argument from going any further. Bill went to settle his father down while Charlie took their mother since he had experience with dragons and right now Molly resembled a Hungarian Horntail.

Once Molly and Arthur were separated and had calmed down and Bill had both of their wands, Hermione asked Richard, "Did you know about this?"

"Half of it. I knew I wasn't your father, but I didn't know who was."

Hermione looked down the table at Arthur and then back to her mum. "How _could_ you?" she accused them both. "How could you let me stay here for seven years and not say a _word_ about this? I was on the run from the Ministry for a year when they were hunting Muggle-borns. Why didn't you say something then?" She directed this last question at Arthur since her parents knew nothing of the wizarding war. "Were you just going to let them kill me or send me to Azkaban if I was caught?" Hermione glared at him.

"I didn't know," Arthur stated calmly.

"You didn't know what, that I was on the run or that I was your daughter? - Oh, wait, you knew both! This is so - You are so - You are both - unbelievable!" Hermione bolted from the kitchen and out the back door, knocking her chair over as she did so. With a quick glance at each other, Arthur and Nancy chased after her. They knew Hermione would need some time to herself in order to process what was just revealed, but they needed her to understand this completely.

Arthur reached her first, just before the apparition point. He grabbed her shoulder. She spun around, fire in her eyes and tears rolling down her cheeks.

"Let me go," she said in a strained voice.

He shook his head. "Please, let us explain?"

Hermione saw a difference in the way he looked at her. He had never looked at her this way. It was how he looked at Ginny. He _only_ looked at Ginny, his daughter, this way. Could he possibly not have known she was his daughter? Her expression softened.

"You're looking at me differently," Hermione mumbled.

Arthur furrowed his eyebrows in confusion.

"You've only ever looked at Ginny that way…You really didn't know?"

"No, honestly, I didn't. If I had known, things would have been much different."

She looked to her mum for reassurance. "He's my dad?"

Nancy nodded.

"And you didn't tell him? Or anyone for that matter?"

"No."

"Why?"

"I didn't know how to contact him. Then when I saw him in Diagon Alley when you were twelve he had his own family and I didn't think he recognized me. He was so happy. I couldn't bring myself to tell him, so I thought it would be acceptable to allow you to stay here for holidays. No one would have to know."

"Actually, I remembered you five minutes into our conversation. I just didn't want anyone to think we already knew each other," Arthur clarified. "So that's why you never told me?"

"I tried telling you before dinner, but you wouldn't listen. I just didn't want to mess everything up for you. I guess it had to come out eventually, though," Nancy explained.

"Oh, well, thank you, but I'm still disappointed that you didn't tell me. You should've known this couldn't be kept a secret forever. Look, why don't we finish this inside? It's cold out here and I don't feel like going over this multiple times.

"That sounds like a good idea," Nancy agreed. She and Arthur started making their way back to the house, but Hermione didn't move.

"Wait." The two adults turned around. "Isn't this a bit awkward now? I mean, what do I even call you?"

Arthur looked thoughtful for a moment then shrugged and said, "Whatever you want to...just, not Mr. Weasley."

Hermione's cheeks turned a light shade of pink. "H-how about I call you Arthur for now…and work my way up to Dad?" she asked shyly.

Arthur beamed at her. "I'd like that." He walked over to her, put an arm around her shoulders, and gave her a tight, comforting squeeze as they looked into each other's eyes.

 **A/N: Hey guys! Sorry it took so long for this chapter. I had a stomach bug and had to work and go to college. Also, I took a little break for Harry Potter weekend on ABCfamily (well FreeForm now). This chapter turned out to be a bit of a challenge also.**

 **Anyway, I love getting reviews from y'all, so please let me know what y'all think of this chapter. There will be one more chapter coming within the week. If y'all want an epilogue let me know, but I guess y'all won't really know until y'all read the next chapter. So, anyway, until next time and thanks for reading!**


	4. Explanations and Realizations

Arthur gingerly opened the back door and stepped inside. The kitchen was empty, except for Molly, Ginny, Fleur, and Audrey who were cleaning up. Luckily, Molly's back was turned to the door and she was scrubbing dishes in the sink, so she didn't know they had come in; none of the young witches let on that the trio had reentered, though Ginny did shoot her father a disdainful look. He let Nancy and Hermione quietly slip through to the sitting room before things progressed.

After the Granger ladies were safely in the next room, Arthur pointed to Molly and mouthed to Fleur, "Wand?"

Fleur shook her head, indicating that Bill still had both his parents' wands.

Finally relaxing a little, Arthur moved further into the kitchen. Trying to decide who to approach, he surveyed the women in the kitchen: Molly was still unaware of his presence, or at least pretending to be; Ginny looked as if she was ready to hex him, so he thought it best to steer clear of her until everything was sorted out; he didn't know Audrey all that well yet; Fleur had been in the family for over a year now and looked sympathetic, yet disappointed, with him. The French, part-veela would be his best choice.

Moving to stand next to Fleur at the table, he breathed into her ear, still not wanting Molly aware of his presence yet, "Where is everyone?"

"Zey are in ze sitting room," Fleur answered just as quietly.

"How are they?"

"Ginny ees ze worst, except for maybe Charlie, but no one ees really happy about zis."

"And Molly?"

"She has calmed down some, but I zink she ees more upset than angry now."

"Thank you, Fleur."

Arthur mutely gained the attention of the three girls and motioned for them to go into the sitting room. Understanding the need to, hopefully, have a calm discussion with Molly, the girls left them alone, though Fleur had to grab Ginny's hand and drag her out.

Once alone, Arthur approached Molly, who was still oblivious to her surroundings, cautiously and slowly wrapped his arms around her from behind. With a start, she looked down at the intruding hands. Recognizing the large, strong yet soft hands and familiar wedding band as her husband's, she went rigid.

"Mollywobbles?" he whispered into her ear.

She still didn't move.

"Molly, we need to talk about this. Please?" he pleaded.

"There's nothing to talk about, Arthur," Molly said as she resumed washing the dishes.

"I know I don't have a valid excuse, or any excuse for that matter, but at least let us explain. I mean, you love Hermione just as much as any of our other kids and Harry. If this hadn't have happened, she wouldn't be here. Think of how much she's helped Harry and Ron, especially the last year of the war." Arthur wasn't sure if bringing up Hermione would help him get through to Molly, but he gave it a shot. All of the Weasleys had welcomed her into the family the moment she set a foot in the Burrow, so why should this make a difference? They should be mad at him, not Hermione. "If anything, don't take this out on her."

Several silence-filled moments passed. He waited patiently for Molly to respond. He knew she was tin deep thought and not just ignoring him again because she had stopped washing and was staring intently at the sudsy water. Finally, Molly spoke.

"Arthur," she sighed exasperatedly. "I know this isn't Hermione's fault. She didn't know about any of this. This isn't about her; this is about you…about us."

"Then let me explain," he implored. "Let us fix this."

Molly turned around in Arthur's arms and looked up at him. Unlike earlier her expression was unreadable. He was usually able to tell how she felt by looking into her eyes, but even those brown orbs showed no emotion.

"Please?" he begged. Cocking his head to the side, he gave her a pleading look. She had never seen Arthur look this pitiful; it reminded her of their kids when they were little. Being used to this expression, it did not faze her.

"You have lied to me for nineteen years." Arthur wanted to interrupt and explain, but he let her continue. "You have allowed your son to date his half-sister. She has stayed in this house for seven years, and you have not said a word about her being your daughter. This is not only wrong for you to do to me and our kids, but to her as well." She extracted herself from his arms and took a couple steps back. "This is probably the worst thing you could do to any of us. I don't understand how or why you would do that. If you were any kind of a decent father, you wouldn't have kept this from her."

Since he wanted to discuss this and she hadn't acknowledged him all day, Arthur had listened and refrained from interrupting her. Everything she said was a verbal slap across his face, especially her last statement. He couldn't take any more of this.

"Molly, I didn't know she was my daughter. Nancy just told me yesterday," he calmly informed her. "I have been just as deprived of this relationship as Hermione has. You know how much I love being a part of our kids' lives and I didn't get that with her. I wish I had known, so I could have protected her, seen all the firsts in her life, been there when she needed me, and been there when she accomplished even the smallest things.. Arthur was really hurt, by Nancy keeping his daughter a secret from him and by Molly insulting his fatherhood.

Molly slowly covered her mouth with her hand. "Oh, Arthur," she breathed.

Arthur continued as if she hadn't said anything. "And do you really think I wouldn't tell her, or that I would let my children date each other? I am not that kind of person, and you know it. And I would never keep something like this from you; I would never be able to. That's why I told you at four in the morning. Knowing this and not telling you was gnawing away at me."

"You kept your one night stand with Nancy from me for nineteen years," she pointed out a little sharply.

"Yes, but that doesn't mean I haven't felt guilty about it ever since."

"Was I not enough for you?" she asked.

Holding her hand and looking straight into her eyes, he assured her, "Exactly the opposite. You were and are more than enough,"

"Then, why did you do it?"

"Like I said, it's not a valid excuse."

"I don't care. You wanted a chance to explain. Here it is."

"I went to a pub in Muggle London with Perkins and a couple other blokes one day after work, Perhaps we had a bit too much of a good time. We chatted up some nice girls, and split up after a while. My curiosity got the better of me. I wondered if they did _it_ the same way in their world as we do in ours," Arthur explained. "It was a one-time thing, with her, with anyone. I promise…I haven't forgiven myself for betraying you."

"If it has bothered you so much, why haven't you told me?" asked Molly.

"I was afraid you would leave me," was his simple answer. Then he added in a whisper, "Please don't leave me."

"I told you before this whole fiasco, 'I love you and nothing could change that.' _Nothing,_ Arthur. I may get upset with you, but I will _never_ stop loving you. And I love Hermione as much as any of our kids or Harry, but…you still lied to me. For nineteen years, Arthur, you lied to me, maybe not directly, but still. It doesn't matter how bad or guilty you feel. Feeling bad doesn't change anything. And I feel like you would never have told me if Nancy hadn't told you about Hermione."

They stared at each other for several long moments before Arthur finally spoke. "Well, what do you suggest we do?"

"There is no 'we' about this. _You_ will have to find a way to fix this, Arthur. You betreayed my trust and you will have to regain it.

"So, after everyone leaves, you will pack whatever you'll need for the next two weeks, at least. I'm not kicking you off of this property, but I am kicking you out of this house. That gives you the shed or the chicken coop to stay in."

"T-two weeks? Molly…" he protested.

"You better be glad it's only for two weeks."

"But, Mollywobbles, I know what I did was horrible and wrong, and I wouldn't expect you to not be upset about this, but –"

"No, Arthur. You are not getting out of this."

Opening his mouth to speak, Molly cut him off once more. "You best quit while you're ahead. I'm only letting you stay here so you can spend some time with Hermione."

Surrendering, Arthur swallowed hard and nodded. "Thank you." He hesitated before asking his next question. "Do you think – maybe – I could get a kiss, for reassurance that you still love me?"

Molly sighed and rolled her eyes in exasperation. She knew he knew she still loved him; he just wanted a kiss before being banished form the house. "Fine." Standing on tip-toe, she gave Arthur a quick peck on the lips. "Happy now?"

Arthur gave her a small smirk

Turning to head into the sitting room, Molly spotted six extendable ears lying on the floor. _Honestly, these kids…_ she thought. Looking at Arthur, she held up three fingers and pointed to him and repeated the same motion with herself, indicating he would take three ears and she would take the other three.

Arthur nodded, lifted his foot, positioned over three ears, and stomped down in unison with Molly. Immediately, they heard a cumulative, "Aargh!" from the six Weasley kids.

The door swung open to reveal six red heads scattered on furniture throughout the sitting room, each holding one of their real ears, while their friends, girlfriends, wife, and the Grangers sat innocently, and just as spread out, on the furniture.

"What was that?" Charlie asked angrily.

"Teaching you lot to keep your noses, or in this case ears, to yourselves?" Arthur replied.

"Well, your teaching almost burst our eardrums," Bill complained.

"Honestly. I've already lost one ear. Do you want me to be completely deaf?" George whined.

"Maybe that will get you all to stop eavesdropping," Molly said, then continued a little less harshly, "I swear, you will all be ninety years old and still eavesdropping…Now, I take it no one needs filling in?"

"No, ma'am," they all answered.

"And I trust you all conveyed what was said to everyone else in this room?"

A guilty silence filled the room.

"So," Arthur said as he sat on the settee with Molly, waiting for his kids' reactions. The bombardment of questions began immediately. Ginny, Charlie, and Bill started the questioning with hostility while Percy, George, and Ron stayed out of it for a while: Percy because he didn't want to risk another falling out with his family, George because he didn't find it that big of a deal. It was nineteen years ago and nothing else had happened, right? And Ron was still shocked that his girlfriend was his sister.

"How could you do that to Mum?" Ginny aggressively inquired.

"Yes. I would love to know that answer, too," Charlie agreed with a false pleasant tone.

"And why did you do that to Mum?" Bill added.

"And why did you let me snog my sister?" Ron chimed in. "We almost did it once," he added indignantly, his cheeks growing red.

"I doubt she would have wanted to even if she wasn't your sister, Ronniekins," George interjected. This caused Ron to blush even more, if that was possible. He elbowed George hard in the ribs, then looked to his father for an answer.

The questions finally halted, giving Arthur time to respond. He felt, Ron's question needed to be answered first. "Ron, I'm sorry. I didn't know, otherwise I would have put a stop to it."

"How could you not know? They're always all over each other," Ginny retorted.

"No, I knew about their relationship. I didn't know Hermione was my daughter."

"Hold on. How could you not know you had another kid?" asked Bill.

Nancy answered his question, "I never told him. He just found out yesterday. I was the only one that has known."

"Mum, did he tell you this, that he didn't find out until yesterday?" Charlie asked because Molly didn't look surprised at this new information.

"Yes, in the kitchen a few minutes ago. I though you all were listening in on us?"

"We were, but there at the beginning neither of you said anything for, like, ten minutes. It was quite boring," Ron answered.

"Apparently, we missed something important during that time," Percy stated.

They spent the next half hour going over all the details and answering more question to clarify any misunderstandings. Everyone had calmed down during this time of enlightenment. Then they got on the topic of Hermione herself.

"I don't see how you couldn't tell she was your daughter. She's practically lived here for the past seven years," Bill said.

"Well, she doesn't look anything like a Weasley. Think about it, she doesn't have red hair or freckles or…anything that defines a Weasley really," Harry pointed out.

"Oh, Harry," Hermione sighed in exasperation. "We spent months living in a tent together and you didn't notice I dye my hair?"

"Sorry, no." Harry shook his head.

"My hair is actually a reddish brown color, not just plain brown."

"Can we see it?" Fleur asked.

"You'll have to wait for the dye to wash out."

"Maybe in the Muggle world." Audrey stood and walked over to Hermione, pulling her wand out. "May I?"

"Umm – sure?"

Audrey waved her wand around Hermione's head three times and her true hair color began to show with each rotation. When she finished, Audrey stepped back for everyone to see. Hermione's hair color was a perfect combination of Nancy's brown hair and Arthur's red.

"Bloody hell! And you didn't figure something was off?" Ron exclaimed. You're supposed to be the brightest witch of your age."

"Ron, you can be so inconsiderate sometimes. Please show some self-control," Percy chided while Molly shot Ron a warning look.

"Sorry, but she's bloody brilliant. You'd think she'd figure it out," he muttered.

"I think it's beautiful," Arthur complimented. Murmurs of agreement echoed through the room. "Why would you ever dye it?"

Hermione shrugged. "I don't know. I just always have." She looked to her parents for further explanation.

"Well, Nancy and I started it when she was younger," Richard started.

"We didn't want anyone to question if she was Richard's daughter," Nancy finished.

"Okay, so all I have is the red hair," Hermione said bitterly. Secretly, she had always wanted to be a Weasley, but now she was disappointed because she was and had no Weasley traits.

"Actually, now that I think about it, you have Arthur's goofy smile, you both take your tea the same way, and your interest in the wizard world rivals Arthur's interest in the Muggle world."

"Really?" Hermione and Arthur asked in unison, the same big, goofy smile stretching across each of their faces. How could they never have noticed? How did Molly notice?

"Really," Molly assured them both. "I'm sure you'll both find more in common now that you know you're his daughter and he's your father."

After this, there were not many more questions and it was getting rather late, so the crowd slowly dwindled down to just the six current inhabitants of the Burrow. Soon after everyone had left, Arthur gathered his things and went to his shed, where he would be staying for the next two weeks. At least he was allowed to stay there in order to bond with his new daughter until she went back for her last semester at Hogwarts.

 **A/N: So, last chapter. Kind of long too, but I think it got everything wrapped up pretty good. Hope y'all enjoyed it!**

 **Also, let me know if y'all want an epilogue and how far in the future you'd like it to be. And I could find a compromise if there are different time periods that y'all want.**

 **I'll be updating "Learning to Cope without Arthur" really soon. I just haven't had much time for it lately. And I will be starting a new story titled "Weasley Family Fallout" or "The Fight" (I haven't really decided on the title yet,so if y'all want to give me input on what sounds more interesting that would be great) The first chapter should be posted tonight or tomorrow.**

 **Thanks for reading and reviewing guys! This story was way more popular than I thought it would be!**


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